Ride With Me
by Coaxial Creature
Summary: Request fic. Prime takes Sam for a ride. A very clean one. Will get dirtier in later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

Fandom: Transformers/Movie-'Verse

Title: Ride With Me

Author: Dex

Characters: Sam, Optimus Prime

Pairing: Sam/Prime. Unrequited.

Rating:PG-13

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters, nor the settings. Please don't repost. Flames will be ignored.

Summary: Sam takes a ride with Prime.

Author's Notes: Request for navisx. Who said that Prime/Sam would be cracktastic.

---

Sam blinked as he saw Prime parked where Bee normally was. He saw Trent and his groupies snickering, and Sam hunched his shoulders, moving towards the semi, really wishing that Bee had been here. Staring at the ground, he made his way into the passenger seat, sinking down, hoping no one else could see him now.

"Is there something wrong?" Optimus Prime's voice held that combination of worry and curiosity that he so often showed. While he worried too much in Sam's opinion, Prime also liked to know what happened, and more importantly why.

"No." Sam forced himself to stay calm, although there was a small hiss to his voice. "Can we go? Now? Please?" " He dropped a little further into the seat, letting out a small sigh of relief as he heard the engine roar to life, Prime pulling out of the parking lot, then groaned as he realized that everyone would see a semi driving itself.

Great.

At least Prime waited until they were out of the parking lot before speaking again. "Are you certain?"

Sam shot Prime a small frown, shaking his head. He'd just been hoping to spend some more time with Bee, but how exactly did he say that without coming off as ungrateful? Sam heard Prime give a small sigh, and then only the thundering of the engine as Prime turned off, onto a larger road. They were going to the base, then, and Sam would have to call his parents when he got there. If he said he was spending time at Mikaela's, they would let him off the hook. Sam leaned against the window, eyes half lidded, watching the traffic pass.

---

Prime was fairly certain the boy had no intention of sleeping. Over the roar of his own engine, he had heard the breaths slowing, and Prime had decelerated, which only seemed to lull Sam further. Prime also suspected that Sam wanted to see Bumblebee, no matter how much he protested that nothing was wrong. However, the Autobot leader had insisted on picking Sam up from school, since Mikaela would be out today. Sick, although Ratchet would check on her later, and until Prime heard from the medic, he would not worry about what he could not change.

Right now, Sam was in his care. He slowed further, wanting to make this ride last as long as possible. It was not often that Prime could find a reason to spend time alone with Sam, and even picking up the boy to speak with him about Mission City was suspect - especially since there was very little talking. None, in fact. Bumblebee could have spoken with Sam, and reported in more easily than Prime going to the school.

Prime heaved another longer sigh, and tried to shake the thoughts off, tried to rid himself of what had quickly come to border on an obsessive worry about Sam. At first, he had attempted to rationalize it, reminding himself that Bumblebee was Sam's guardian. Worry about Sam was just an extended worry about Bumblebee, was it not?

However, even now, with the Decepticon threat gone, at least temporarily, Prime found ways to concern himself about Sam's well being. The compulsive nature of the thoughts bothered him, and so he had come to relieve Bumblebee, and take Sam to the base himself. Which, really, had not been his intent. But showing up at Sam's house would only call unwanted attention to himself, and would cause the boy more problems. How to explain where his care had gone, and why Prime had been waiting at the school instead?

No, better to go back to the base, and have Bumblebee return to the Witwicky's home with Sam later. At least that decision had been easy to make when it came to Sam. Even as he thought it, the boy shifted, murmuring, the words impossible to pick out. Sam's eyes fluttered open, and he frowned again.

"Did you sleep well?" Prime managed to keep his voice completely blank, although it took some amount of effort.

Sam checked his watch before answering, snorting slightly. "Yeah."

"Twelve minutes forty three seconds."

Sam blinked. "What?"

"How long you were asleep."

Sam's mouth opened, and he snapped it shut. "You... keep track?" It seemed like a lot of effort.

"Yes. But I assume you do not want a more accurate time?"

"It gets more accurate?" Sam shook his head, quickly adding, "No. I just wanted to know if I was out for ten, or say thirty, minutes."

There was a pause, and then Prime pointed out, "It only takes twenty minutes from your school to get to the base. Unless Bumblebee decided to pay attention to the speed limits." Prime was well aware that he was driving slightly under; if it came off as suspicious, even him bringing up the speed limits did not seem to notice that Prime drove slowly compared to most times. Either that, or he did notice, and did not care...

No, Prime would push away that thought, and where it might lead. Or attempt to, although Sam made it close to impossible as he ran his hand along the leather seats. Prime forced himself not to gasp, not to groan, or do anything else that might give himself away. He succeeded until he wondered how Bumblebee dealt with the touch...

And then the engine revved, possessively, roaring.

---

Sam's hand slid along the seat, fingers stroking, not really paying attention to the motion. He had just gotten used to doing it with Bumblebee. So when the engine became almost deafening, before quickly dying down, Sam sunk back into the seat, tensing quickly, jerking his hand away. "I'm sorry..." He muttered it, looking out the window, wondering why Optimus Prime had come to get him, especially since it seemed that Sam only managed to piss the Autobot off.

"I apologize as well." There was something tight, too controlled, in Prime's voice. Almost like he had suddenly gotten tense.

Weird, Sam decided. Very weird. He knew that tone, too, but he had to be imagining it. Because no way was it nearly as jealous as it had sounded. Although, he flushed a little at the thought. Nope. As much as he wouldn't have minded, there was no way Prime had just growled possessively at him.

Sam let out a long breath, shivering slightly at the thought. Prime must have noticed, and he flushed even more as the heat turned on, a low hum that underscored the sound of the engine. "Thanks." After an awkward silence, Sam added, "Why are we going to the base?"

He swallowed hard at the silence.

"Bumblebee should take you home."

Sam couldn't believe it for a moment. "Right." He'd forgotten about how much he'd wanted Bee to be there, instead of Prime. With a small sigh, he turned out to watch the traffic again. His hand almost reached out to stroke the seat again, and he forced himself not to even touch Prime. He turned back to the dashboard. "Then why did you come and get me in the first place?"

Nothing for a while. Was Prime actually thinking about the answer? And why, exactly, did that flicker a spark of hope in Sam?

"I wanted to see you."

Oh god... Oh god, oh god... What the hell did he say to that. "Yeah?" He kind of squeaked it, flinching at the sound. Clearing his throat, he added. "Okay."

Prime sighed. "About Mission City."

"Oh." Sam hated the sullenness in his voice. "What about Mission City?"

There was a longer moment of silence. "Ratchet was doing research on how humans deal with trauma."

Sam snorted, feeling bad about it when Prime fell silent again. "I mean, I'm not. And-" Nope, he didn't really want to question if Prime thought that was a good cover up, especially with how hesitant he was being. Normally, when Prime wanted to know something, he simply asked. "Never mind."

They fell into a more comfortable silence, Sam reaching out, stroking the seat again more aware of what he was doing. He wondered how it felt from the other side, if they felt like humans did when someone else touched them. He flushed a little at the thought, but continued, noticing a slight change in the sound of Prime's engine. Neither of them would say anything, and Sam knew he wasn't going to be able to touch Bee, at least not for a couple days. After that, it really depended on if Prime went back to ignoring Sam or not.


	2. Chapter 2

"What?" Sam had waited until Mikaela was out of sight before asking Bee the question.

The silence stretched on, and Bee pulled off the road that would take them to Sam's house. Sam knew better than to ask, and just let the Camaro go where it would. When it ended up taking him to the lookout, he didn't ask. He waited for Bee to open the door, since no one else was around, but instead, he remained quiet and still.

"Should I get out?" Sam's voice was low, and he stared at his feet, hating the way his voice had wavered. He really wasn't sure what had happened with Prime anymore, and now Bee was acting like this, giving Sam the silent treatment. It didn't help that Prime had made sure not to be in the same room as Sam since...

Whatever it had been. Not really a conversation and everything that Sam thought did - or didn't - happen had been guesswork on his part in the first place. His stomach tightened, just the thought of trying to figure out what his relationship with Prime was too complicated for him. He tried to ignore the question he really wanted to ask - did they have a relationship at all?

"No." Bee's answer cut through Sam's train of thought, thankfully derailing it.

"Okay." Sam took that as an invitation to relax, sprawling a little on the seat.

"What happened between you and Prime?"

Relaxing was just not an option. Sam tensed, even tighter, curling up on the seat, closing his eyes. "I don't know." He paused, swallowing hard, and quickly added, "I know. You're going to say that... But I just don't know, Bee. He told me he wanted to see me, and then he asked if I was traumatized by Mission City because Ratchet was doing research, and then... nothing." Sam sighed, letting out a breath that seemed to make his whole body shudder.

The radio turned on, something loud and new, something that Bee thought Sam would like, while he probably hated it. Sam smiled sadly, shaking his head. "It's alright. I don't know... I don't know what I want." He curled up on Bee again, fingers searching for a purchase on the seat although he knew he wouldn't find one.

The music got louder, and Sam just lay there. Bee didn't say anything, until Sam sat up. The music got quiet, becoming background noise. "Thanks." Sam put his hands on the steering wheel.

"Are you sure?" Concern laced Bee's voice now.

Sam nodded. "Can you just not tell him about this?"

There was a pause, and Sam felt his stomach churn. Bee looked up to Prime too much to feel comfortable hiding anything from him, so Sam hated asking Bee for this favor.

"Okay." Bee sounded confident, at least.

"Thanks."

The music changed, turning to something older, a little softer, but it was more to Bee's taste. Sam felt like they were more on equal footing, like maybe Bee didn't feel so badly for him. They drove slowly, neither speaking, as they headed back to Sam's house.

---

Prime had not been prepared for Bumblebee to approach him, or for his hesitance. "Is there something wrong?" The concern wavered between Bumblebee and Sam; one of them was unhappy at best, and Prime hated the thought of anything going wrong for either of them.

Bumblebee quickly broke the new silence. "No." He had promised Sam, after all, and he could understand Sam's confusion. Bumblebee had danced along that edge, the nervousness, and fear, the deep rooted shame even, that came along with hope. If Sam wanted to say nothing, it was not Bumblebee's right to tell Prime about this.

Prime sighed at the answer, obviously not the truth. He trusted Bumblebee to come to him if something needed his attention. For now, Prime would allow him to deal with Sam, assuming that was for the best. "Did you need to speak to me?" Prime's voice softened; perhaps that was best. Not assuming that anything was wrong, but just offering to listen.

Another pause, and Bumblebee shook his head, the silence sullen. Obviously Bumblebee was struggling with the issue. "If you do-"

It was uncharacteristic of him, but Bumblebee cut Prime off. "Even if I wanted to, it would be... impossible."

Prime froze, tense at the words. Bee backed away slightly, and Prime forced himself to relax. He wondered if Bumblebee had heard about him and Sam, and their conversation. If forced to make the admission, Prime was unsure of what exactly had transpired between them, and where he stood in regards to the boy.

It was most likely that Bumblebee was bothered about yet another situation, and that Prime was once again worrying when he had no cause to. He wished to say something, anything, to assure Bumblebee. Instead he watched the young scout, who stood, something hopeful in his optics as he met Prime's gaze.

Prime sighed, not sure what to give Bumblebee. The yellow mech dimmed his optics, turning away, but not leaving just yet. He paused, tensing, and for a moment, Prime thought he might turn around, say something more, but he just shook his head slowly, before walking away, shoulders hunched slightly.

---

Sam sat on the floor of his room, back against the corner of the wall, holding the phone in his hands. He lifted the receiver, swallowing hard before he even started dialing Miles' number, unable to remember the times he'd tried, and failed. Who could he talk to? Mikaela knew about Prime, but Sam was dating her. How could he talk to her about Prime...

Miles? He wouldn't get jealous at least, but how could he understand? This would be complicated enough if Sam had been attracted to another guy. But to Prime? He could never explain and keep the Autobot's a secret.

Still, he dialed Sam's cell, slumping against the wall in relief as the answering machine picked up. "Hey, Miles, it's Sam. Just... I'm stupid." He swallowed hard, squeezing his eyes hard, shaking. He hadn't meant to say that. "Just call me back," he whispered, quickly adding, "please?" He hung up, hands clenching at his sides, trying to control himself. He didn't even understand what was happening.

He finally felt well enough to stand, and made his way downstairs, hoping Bee would be willing to take him out, anywhere. The lake, maybe, or the lookout because people were less likely to be there in the early afternoon. He had hoped to bypass his parents, or at least, hoped they wouldn't keep him too long. He sighed softly when he saw his mom in the living room, standing against the wall, watching her.

She looked up, saw Sam, and they both froze, although Judy moved first. "Oh my god."

Sam closed his eyes, swaying against the wall, trying to cling to it. "I just forgot lunch." He'd 'forgotten' lunch, because eating had not worked for him lately. He just couldn't hold anything down.

"I'll be alright," Sam whispered, opening his eyes, which only disoriented him more. He pushed himself up really. "I was going to go out and see Miles." He shoved himself away from the wall, glancing at his mom, then staring at the floor, shuffling his shoes, idly noticing that one of his shoelaces was untied.

"I don't know." When he looked up, she was glancing out the window, before she turned back to him. She motioned towards the kitchen. "Call Miles back. Tell him you'll meet him later."

Sam shrugged. "He didn't know I was coming over."

"Then I want to talk to you." There was a slightly sharp edge to her soft voice; she wasn't mad, but she wasn't going to let this go, either. Her face had that look, too, that dared him to walk away, or tell her they weren't going to talk.

Sam sighed, and trudged after her, into the kitchen, sitting down at the table, while his mom ventured into the fridge. He shivered slightly, paling at the thought that she was taking out food for him. "Please, I can't..." He shook his head, doubting she would understand.

She stubbornly put the food in front of him, leftover chicken that she'd turned into chicken salad, adding some bread. She moved without speaking, putting a hand on Sam's forehead, and he squirmed. "Mom, please." He whined it, pulling away from her.

She gave a small sigh of exasperation, but pulled away, sitting next to him. "Sam."

She brushed his hair back, and he froze, tensing again, hunching his shoulders. "Don't. Just... don't."

"Sam..." The hand pulled back, and Sam turned to look at Judy, shaking again at her expression. She pulled him into a hug.

"What's going on with you?"

Sam heard the question, and shook his head into his mom's shoulder. He didn't know how she'd react if she heard that Prime existed. Then he had to add that Prime may have been coming onto him. No, he definitely was not going to tell his parents first.

---

Bumblebee's engine growled unhappily as he pulled away from the house; Sam did not look well, at all. He peeled out of the driveway, tires squealing as he sped down the street. Sam closed his eyes, slumping against the door. "Hey, Bee, slow down." Nothing changed. "Okay, then don't," Sam muttered, eyes cast down.

Bee wanted to get Sam back to the base, quickly. This was between Sam and Prime; Bee couldn't chose between them, and wasn't going to stand by and watch whatever was going on between them. The radio began blaring, and Sam cringed, pushing harder into the door, until the sound went down to a manageable level. After a moment's pause, Bee turned the music off, the sudden silence stretching out between him and Sam. "Talk to him."

Sam sighed, and for a moment, Bee felt bad about how annoyed that had come out. "How?" Sam whispered it, shivering slightly. "What do I say?"

Bee kept driving silently for a moment. "Tell him what you told me."

Sam kept trembling, huddling against Bee's door.

- - -

Author's notes: I'm not as happy with this chapter as with the first, but the first was just so subtle... I'm hoping to capture that again once I get Prime and Sam alone again.


End file.
